This past week, I gave my Advance Directives talk to my group. I try to give it on a Friday, so that my patients can think it over and bring questions on Monday. Over the years, I have had many patients call me and ask when I am giving that talk again so they can…
I have job security. Big-time. How can I be so sure of this? Because medical marijuana is legal in California, other states are soon to follow. As of this writing, 22 states have legalized marijuana, meaning one can have a certain amount on their person and grow a certain number of plants. All one has…
One of the markers we use in Pulmonary Rehab is the Borg scale. We have patients rate their breathing from 0 to 10, and their exercise intensity from 0 to 10. It takes them a few weeks to get used to this, as most of them rate their breathing as either good or bad, and…
Are you facing having to undergo a lung transplant? The “Good News” that you are on the transplant list may have been a long time coming… or, may have happened so quickly you were surprised. Either way, the events leading up to being on the list are grueling, and scary… so many tests, so many…
I get asked all the time… “Kelly, I have no insurance. So every time I go to the clinic, I get seen by a different doctor. They have my chart, but I have to start all over every time I go. You say to ask my doctor about this and that, but I have no…
Are you using your oxygen correctly? Most patients don’t! The only way to tell if you need oxygen, and when, is to do the proper tests. A six- minute walking test, done by your R.T., will tell you if you need oxygen with exercise, or at rest. An overnight sleep study will tell you…
I see it everywhere. Young kids and young adults thinking that electronic cigarettes, or “e-cigs”, are a better choice than tobacco smoke. I also see older folks trying to quit smoking, so they vape instead. Nicotine is still nicotine. Addictive and poisonous. What’s really in that liquid anyway? One of the hot topics at this…
When you or your child have episodes of breathlessness that seem to come out of nowhere, it’s normal to want to try everything you can get your hands on to be able to breathe and not feel that way again. But what really works and what is hype? If you do a search for ‘asthma…
Pulse oximeters are very useful for telling us when you don’t have enough oxygen in the blood. Some people desaturate with exercise. Some people desaturate when they sleep. One of the things we measure in Pulmonary Rehab is saturation at rest, with exercise, and then recovery (how long it takes for your heart rate and…
I tell my patients on oxygen (and those who are supposed to be on o2 but refuse) to always protect your heart. When your oxygen levels dip too low, it is your heart that works harder to supply the vital organs and the muscles with what little oxygen is left in your bloodstream. Your heart…